It’s mid-Autumn here in Sydney, but you wouldn’t know it from the glorious sunny days we’ve been having. Not too hot, not too cold, it’s a “just right” time of year.
The garden is certainly thriving under these conditions, although we’ve been a little short on time and energy to tend to it these past couple of months. But that’s ok – we’ve never been stressed out by garden chores – we simply do whatever we can, when we can.
Thankfully, the four tromboncinos we planted last year are still producing, which means there’s always something green in the vegetable crisper drawer. The plants have now scrambled out of their original bed into two others, climbing over the fence and the neighbouring camellia trees in the process…
They keep producing babies, and we keep pollinating them…
We collected seed from our last crop of Little Gem lettuces, but found that they grew into regular cos when planted. Not that it’s a problem, as these cos seem particularly sweet and tender…
Sage, which we’ve always struggled so hard to grow, seems to have come into its own this year. It likes being in a bed far more than in the herb garden – it obviously needs more water than oregano and rosemary…
Eggplants are a staple in the garden – they always seem to do well here, although their capsicum and tomato relatives struggle…
It wouldn’t be a garden update without a photo of our perennial leeks – the babies are growing like grass, and whenever we get the energy up, we transplant them into the beds to fatten up…
…like this…
The new lemongrass plant is going gangbusters – our neighbour Nic comes over to harvest leaves for her weaving projects…
We have lots of lovely lemons on our tree, but none of them seem to be turning yellow…
As you know, we don’t have much luck with tomatoes in the garden. We don’t plant them, but will occasionally let the self-sown ones grow – hopefully this one won’t succumb to wilt as the others have…
Most of our basil plants have now gone to seed now, except for this little one that’s still producing leaves for our kitchen…
A late planted zucchini patch – Black Jacks this time – is keeping us in fruit. The Lebanese zucchinis were very nice, but these darker skinned ones are our favourites…
At the end of last year, lovely Jo from Queensland gifted me with comfrey and arrowroot tubers, both of which are growing well in our garden. The comfrey will hopefully provide us with mulch, but it also has medicinal uses…
..and the arrowroot has taken off! Look at what a beautiful, tropical looking plant it is! We’re planning to use it as a shade plant around the garden…
Apparently you can eat the tubers of the arrowroot, so we dug one up to try (with a little imagination I can see how it got its name). We peeled it and soaked it and baked it tossed in oil and salt. Sadly, nobody liked it – it tasted a bit swede like, only not nearly as nice. I wonder if it might be good in a soup?
Jo emailed me recently to say that she had heaps of arrowroot and comfrey tubers to give away to fellow Aussie gardeners – you would need to send her a self-addressed pre-paid parcel post envelope. If you’re interested, please leave a comment below and I’ll put you in touch with her.
A photo of this morning’s pickings…
How’s your garden looking this month?
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
We’re eating a lot of eggplant at the moment. Is it lime season too? My mother gave me an enormous bag of limes from a friend of hers.
It must be lime season, but ours aren’t growing yet!!
Beautiful! I think the arrowroot plant is very pretty. Never heard of one before. Does the arrowroot flour come from it? I have some comfrey this year as well. Not sure where it will be planted yet. Snow just melted in garden, but tomatoes and peppers in greenhouse are doing well. A few more weeks until we can plant out.
Manuela, I believe so – it’s very starchy and I think they process it into arrowroot powder. It’s a very interesting plant! Your greenhouse always sounds so productive! :)
Wow. I am amazed you are still getting all that summer produce. Our garden is looking very sad at the moment. We are between crops although the newly planted seedlings are doing well. I have never heard of perennial leeks. Do they have a similar taste to normal leeks?
Tania, we adore our perennial leeks – they taste like leeks and spread like onion weed. Win win! I wrote about them here:
https://figjamandlimecordial.com/2011/11/25/perennial-leeks/
We are getting a surprisingly long season in our vegie garden this year here in the mountains. Still picking tomatoes and zucchini ( which have been amazing!) beans, lettuce, eggplant, carrots, silverbeet and beetroot. I am itching to get our cooler crops in but loath to pull out those still productive!
Sue, we’re about to put winter leafy greens in – planting rainbow chard, broccoli and hopefully some broccoli rabe soon! x
Those veggies look so “alive” as compared to what we can buy at the shop. You must smile every time you come in from the garden.
Maureen, I do smile, although I’m getting ever so slightly intimidated by the almost endless stream of tromboncinos! :)
What a Bounty! I am so jealous – nowhere close to starting the garden here. Have a Great One:)
Renee, we didn’t start our garden until we were well into our forties! Lots of time yet! :)
So much wonderful variety Celia! My trombos grew long and large, much thicker than yours but our weather has been hotter and dryer- do you think that would make the difference? I’ve also got arrowroot and Lemon grass growing but wonder how they’ll go with our frosts. Last week I was lucky to get some wasabi and a vanilla orchid, I’m so excited! I hope you have a wonderful winter crop too sweetie xox
Becca, I’m so glad yours grew well!! We’ve been picking ours younger, for fear of being swamped by giant trombies – plus they taste like zucchini when they’re younger rather than squash! Sounds like wonderful stuff happening in your garden, love! x
There’s so much going on! And I’m so pleased to see your lemon harvest will be significantly greater than last year’s. Love the look of the eggplants – they are so good in a green chicken curry xx
I took those lemon photos just for you, Charlie. :) xx
Celia I know I say it every time but I so love your garden update posts.
It must be such a treat to walk out there in the afternoons and bring in a fresh harvest for dinner.
I love that you say you don’t get too stressed about it and just tend to it when you get the time. I have to remember not to be too hard on myself when I let some things get a bit neglected. It’s all experimental in my garden!
I just did a bit of a check in this morning – the ginger that I planted is going well (will have to research when you can harvest it?) and my mint had gone wild again. I wish I had more people to give it to!
I have three varieties of chilis two of which are doing very well now I’ve protected them from the possums.
My baby capsicum plant had 7 fruit on it that I was watching every day getting ready to pick them at the slightest sign of red then all but one disappeared over night. I picked him and he’s ripening on my bench (should have done that with the others).
Rosemary is also going well as are my spring onions. I need to get cooking because they’re getting huge!
Claire, make harissa with the mint and chillis – here’s our recipe:
https://figjamandlimecordial.com/2010/01/28/harissa/
It all sounds like it’s growing in your garden – and yes, don’t be too hard on yourself, or the garden stops being fun! xx
What a great harvest Celia! You’re right, the weather is perfect at the moment isn’t it? I love sitting outside under the sun, relishing in its warmth without getting burnt, and after sunset its perfectly crisp without being freezing. I adore this time of the year.
Celia where do you buy tromboncinos plants or seeds from? I have to admit I just googled the vegetable because I’ve never seen them before. I rang my hubby too who happens to be a horticulturist at a nursery here and he hadn’t heard of them before either…funny looking vegetable!
Lisa, they’re fabulous, here’s my blogpost on them:
https://figjamandlimecordial.com/2012/12/19/tromboncinos/
We were given our seeds, but you can buy them at Diggers and at the Italian Gardener:
http://theitaliangardener.com.au/products/SQUASH-%28Zucchetta%29-serpente-di-Sicilia.html
OK – homework time again! Have to find out about the perennial leeks and whether they would grow at 200 m and inland? My Meyers have turned beautiful yellow in the last fortnight, but this is the year of a very small harvest: should have remembered they have voracious appetites and time and circumstance have not allowed much time for the darling tree :) !
Eha, we bought our perennial leeks from Cornucopia seeds, but I don’t think they’re selling them anymore. I have been told that they’re available on ebay. Here’s my blogpost on them:
https://figjamandlimecordial.com/2011/11/25/perennial-leeks/
Thanks heaps: shall try! Have a lovely weekend :) !
WOW – what an epic haul! Can I ask what you use your lemon grass for? I’ve been making tea….but that’s it as the stem is not all white like the lemon grass we get at Colesworth. My tomatoes went OK this year as did the zucchinis, only 4 eggplants though…it’s so hard in pots.
Mel, I have to admit, I don’t use it for much, despite my initial plans to make oodles of curries with it. Our friend Nicole weaves uses it in her basket weaving, and I’ll occasionally use it for making tea as you do!
I so enjoy a vicarious stroll through your garden. I had the same thing happen with sage, until I wanted to use them as a feature plant in a flower garden and with a bit more space, and not overly much water – we aren’t there so just rain, it was quite happy for a few years. I’m hoping my basil plant will be good for a few more salads… I have seen arrowroot plants but never knew that’s what they were – good idea to use them to shade smaller more delicate plants. I’m also enjoying the sun, mostly through a window, and the cooler monrings & evenings. I hope the good weather hangs around for a sunny ANZAC Day :)
ED, hope you have a nice ANZAC Day! Thanks for joining us on our garden stroll – a lot of it is bare at the moment, but it’s still feeding us! :) The arrowroot plants just look so lush and pretty..shame they don’t taste any good!
Stanley ate her way through my marrows. I’m going to have to change my plans and make a vegetable garden where she can’t get in. I only ever use arrow root to thicken sauces as it has no flavour :)
Tandy, I’ve only ever used arrowroot powder like cornflour – have you ever used it as a thickener in its root form? I’d be fascinated to know about it.. x
Everything looks wonderful. I hope our garden at Casa Debbio does as well.
I adored seeing your photos of Casa Debbio the other day.. x
What a good range of green colour. Ideal subjects for paintings.
Aah the photographer’s eye, Peter, I will pay more attention when I’m next out and wandering.. :)
I love your garden Celia, so green, healthy and productive. It is a beautiful time of the year isn’t it? Happy gardening my friend ;)
Jane, I am so comforted to know that you’re being swamped with trombies as well! Hope your garden is going brilliantly! xx
Lots of lovely fresh food there, Celia. I’m impressed that you still have basil leaves – mine just seem to bolt to seed these days. :-(
Amanda, most of the plants have now gone to seed, but they’re still producing lots of leaves. Weirdest thing ever! x
So many good things growing in your happy patch of green, Celia. Love that you have eggplants!
Lizzy, the eggplants have been great, but we’re now struggling to get the last lot to ripen.. hope all is well, darling.. x
What a great harvest! We’re still getting frosts so only hardy plants can get a start yet.
Pat, we really are blessed to have such a long growing season here!
Autumn is such a wonderful time for gardening. I spy rainbow chard in your garden as well, looks good. I haven’t tried trombacino yet but should because the zucchinis have done very little here this year. I too prefer the black jack to Lebanese. I have some climbing beans just finishing but the snake beans have just started – what do I do with them? Some carrots and onions are poking their heads up as are the first of the potatoes. The caterpillars are munching on the cabbages, the sweet corn is finishing and the sweet potato is going strong. I have a new crop arriving on Saturday – pigs! I hope they like arrowroot.
I forgot – although I’ve read that the comfrey won’t grow from seed mine has so you may want to dispose of that seed stalk.
thanks for the tip, Jo! x
Jo, that’s late for snake beans! Ours are long gone – I think they’re need hot weather, so maybe you’ll have better luck with them at this time of the year than we would! Thanks again for the arrowroot and comfrey – both doing so well in the garden! And pigs – how exciting! :)
Love the garden tour. I would love some arrowroot. We have comfrey already but it has been a while since we have seen it as there is a rampant pumpkin vine taking over the yard. I am loving the weather too this is the best time of the year for us.
Fiona, I’ve sent you an email to put you in touch with Jo! It really is a gorgeous time of year, isn’t it? Although just starting to get cold now..
I love your garden tours- each and every season you have something worthwhile in your garden! I try, but am happy to have some herbs and maybe a few tomatoes from our patch- I have some Swiss chard starting out right now and have planted lettuce, hopefully I’ll get some.
Heidi, I hope you get some too! Your tomatoes are always so glorious! x
Miss Piggy, you can juice lemon grass. The trick to juicing things like lemongrass or lime leaf or anything a bit tough that would normally just get sucked in and spat out of a normal rotary juicer is to incorporate it in something like a lump of brocolini or celery leaves or something which hold onto it and then press the lump through slowly so it gets ground up. I prefer this to tea. Recently I decided I much preferred most herbs juiced instead of herb teas. Tulsi is good with apples and celery. I have some rue growing from cuttings and plan to try that too in tiny amounts. I actually have one of those big squeezing juicers that are supposed to oxidise things less but its more of a cleanup chore than the old National juicer which according to my friend has a washing machine motor which will never die. We’ll see about that!
I never thought about juicing lemongrass, thanks for the tip!
How inspiring! I’ll have to post some picks of our Spring. our tomatoes are just coming in. We have a good sized patch of basil this year. You’ll have to send me a recipe or two. Hugs, Maz.
Maz, oh can’t wait to see the photos! How are the artichokes going?
They are huge. I’m hoping to fry up a batch this weekend. Nummers! :-)
Your garden looks great…awesome harvest Celia…thanks for sharing the pictures, I sure enjoy going through it.
Hope you are having a lovely week :)
Juliana, thank you for sharing it with me! It’s been a great week – hope yours has been too! :)
Looking good, what a wonderfully productive garden you have – I thought of you today as there is a lone fennel plant waving in the veg bed, in a Gloria Gaynor sort of way. I have a vague memory of picking oranges in Greece years ago and being told not to pick the ones which had turned orange as they would be overripe, but to pick them when they were yellowy green, wonder if the same applies to lemons? But it is just a vague memory… xx
Jo, there might well be something to that, because the green lemons have been very juicy! And where would I be without your lone (and always brave) fennel plants to wave at me? :)
Mid-Autumn and this is what your garden produces? It’s amazing, Celia! You really do have a nice variety of vegetables, though it’s too bad about the tomatoes. Still, you’re wise to quit trying and to concentrate of those plants that will do well. You can always bater with a neighbor/friend that has better success with tomatoes. Hmm … I wonder how many tomatoes a single tromboncino would trade for? :)
It’s just not Chicago weather John, we get such mild winters by comparison. I *think* we might have finally found a tomato solution – we’ll keep you all posted! :)
Our garden has lots of seedlings but not very much produce at the moment. A couple of eggplants still on the vine and a little basil. I’m pretty excited to see our winter crops pop up.
Clare, it was so nice to see your backyard photos – what a lovely space you have! x
I love going to American blogs, and seeing lots of Rhubarb and spring produce, and then coming here to see fruits and veggies of my favourite season. What a wonder that you grow so much, and such variety and that it does well!
I want some Sage. I do have seeds…..need to get planting!
Oz, we don’t use the sage nearly as much as we should, especially since it’s now growing so well! Hope all is well with you and the family! x
Your garden is thriving, Celia, what a wondeful produce! For your smaller tomatoes, a good tip: they need at least 8 hours of full sunshine per day!
Your aubergines look excellent! I had the same sort of courgettes last year: your courgettes look great! You grow a lot of veggies yourself: cool!
Thanks for the update too! I have a lovely pumpkin plant that I sew from seed & that is doing very well. My salad leaves are growing each day, my spinach too. I still have to buy cherry tomato plants, chili plants & aubergine plants for in the garden! :)
Sophie, pumpkin is one thing we haven’t been able to grow very well. Maybe one day! I’d love to see photos of your garden – have you blogged about them?
Not yet, this year but The blossoms are infull swing now, finally. I have a cut Japanese Cherry tree & flowers that are starting to grow well! Maybesoon,…on my blog!
My chickens love eating Queensland Arrowroot leaves and it makes excellent mulch – just chop and drop
Priscilla, I have a sourdough starter that shares your name! :) The chickens adore the arrowroot leaves!
A lovely looking garden, Celia. We’re certainly having a gorgeous autumn – sunny days, cool evenings … the makings of wonderful garden/kitchen projects. Keep up the good gardening.
Rach, it’s a little haphazard at the moment, but it’s nice that it’s still feeding us! :)
Ah yes, the winter is soon there, I always forget this :) Beautiful photographs and vegetables, this year seems that we couldn’t plant anything… Thank you, love, nia
Your garden looks beautifully lush and productive. Those tromboncinos look such fun. I’ve never seen an arrowroot before, so that’s interesting as I used arrowroot powder instead of cornstarch – it’s meant to be quite healthful. Comfrey is such a wonder plant. We use it mostly for compost and fertiliser, but the bees love it, so we always leave some to flower. And I once made comfrey cream for healing cuts and bruises at a herbal course I went on – it made a good foot balm too.
Choc, we’re growing comfrey with the hope of using it as mulch, will see how we go. And the arrowroot is intriguing – I’m quite taken with it, even though we can’t figure out a way to eat it! The trombies are great fun – like a zucchini with fewer seeds, or a mini squash – they just don’t seem to want to stop growing! :)
There are beautiful limes from Yemen in our market right now. Making the most of the end of the growing season. How interesting about the arrow root.
Sounds fab, Sally, I adore limes. I wish our trees would grow! :)
Celia, my lemons ripened about a fortnight ahead of yours last year, they have just started to turn yellow this week……….very excited indeed!
Elaine, I’ll cross my fingers that ours won’t be far behind! Thank you! :)
Sadly the summer garden is winding up to a close. We still have basil, parsley, silverbeet, beetroot, spring onion, a few capsicums and tomatoes that I doubt will turn red in time, but like yours the eggplants are still pumping them out.
Our eggplants have grown but they now don’t seem to be ripening with the recent cold spell. Ah well, can’t complain, it’s been an amazing run! :)
You make me want a proper garden sooo bad!
I hope you get one soon, Nic! :)